A Stranger of the Night
by lenkid
Summary: Jondy's in town, and she may not be the person that Max wants her to be
1. Default Chapter

Author's notes: I've had this in my head for awhile now, and I finally got the chance to write it down. I'd be more than happy to continue if you want me to. Enjoy!

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Max raced through the streets of Seattle on her motorbike. God she loved that bike. Whenever she was on it, she felt that all of her problems could just be ripped from her soul as the wind screamed by her. And that was what she prayed for tonight. A release from her problems. Sure, she had problems all the time, but today was just a bad day. Not only had Normal been riding her ass all day, but she had gotten harassed by the sector police one too many times, and had at least three greasy guys grab her ass as she tried to do her job and deliver them whatever porn they had most recently sent for. _Good god this feels good. I am so glad I can just hop on my baby and let my problems melt away. I think, no, I'm sure, I would literally go crazy if I couldn't tear down these streets every night._ Max wound her way around the desolate city, and finally made her way to Crash. _I hope Original Cindy's here. I need someone to help me let loose tonight. I think I need to have some serious fun, and she's the best person I can think of to find it for me. _Max parked her bike, turned off the ignition, and climbed off her bike. She looked back at her bike as she walked towards the door of the bar, and as she turned around to look where she was going, she ran head-on into someone. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry! I guess I should be more careful about my surroundings." Max looked into the eyes of the stranger. She was once told that you could forget a person's face, but you could never forget their eyes. This person's eyes looked so familiar, but totally foreign at the same time.

"That's ok. I wasn't really looking where I was going either, so it's kind of my fault too. Is that your ride?" The stranger pointed towards Max's bike.

"Yeah." Max looked the stranger over now that some verbal contact had been made between the two of them. It was a girl, about Max's height. Actually, almost exactly Max's height. She had shoulder length curly blonde hair, that was obviously gelled to stay in place, piercing hazel eyes, and skin that looked to be quite tan. Not natural like Max's, but one that appeared to be well worked on. The girl had a similar taste in clothing to Max. She wore tight blue-jeans, a tight dark blue shirt that barely touched the tops of her jeans, and a black leather coat. Her boots were black as well, and had a couple of inches of heel, that made her look taller than she actually was. Max's concentration was broken however, when the girl spoke.

"Nice." She started to walk towards it. "It's a Ninja right?"

Max nodded her response.

"Yeah, I thought so. I've been looking for one of these. Where'd you get it?"

Max's curiosity had been peaked. She couldn't get the girl's eyes out of her head, but talking about her bike was always a welcome conversation. She walked back towards her bike, and around the other side of it so that she could look at the girl head-on. "I scored it from this guy a couple years back. I saw it, and just had to have it."

"Wow, it's great." The girl ran her hand tenderly over the bike and sighed. "Ah well, eventually I'll be able to afford one of these. Until then, I can dream." The girl looked up from the bike, and smiled at Max. "Well, I've got to get going. Sorry about crashing into you again."

"Hey no problem! It was as much my fault as yours." Max returned the girl's smile, and waved to her as she headed off into the night. _Those eyes. So familiar, but I can't place them. _She shrugged her shoulders, rounded her bike, and once again headed towards the door of Crash. As soon as she walked in, she saw Original Cindy's back, which was quickly replaced with her face as she turned to see who was coming in the door.

"Hey boo! You just missed Original Cindy's newest attraction. She is one fine specimen!"

Max could only laugh at her friend. "Are you sure she even swings your way?"

"I don't know, but if she's smart she does."

"So what's this chick like?"

"Well, she's got blonde hair, always a turn on, but Original Cindy thinks it might not be real. Anyway..."

Max's face turned to one of recognition. _Probably the girl I ran into. _"She got hazel eyes...?"

Original Cindy was dumbfounded at Max's knowledge. "Yeah, how'd you know?"

"Ran into her on my way in. She seemed nice enough. What was her name again?"

"Original Cindy liked it a lot. It was different, kind of like yours." She stopped for a minute as if to try to remember it. "Um, it was...Jondy. Yeah, that's it."

Max's face dropped. That's why the girl's eyes had looked so familiar, but it still didn't work out. Jondy had blue eyes. Like Logan's. So blue that you could never forget them, but this girl's eyes were hazel. Also, Jondy always seemed to have dark hair, and this girl had blonde hair. Original Cindy thought maybe it was dyed, so it could be, but the eyes were all wrong. It couldn't be her Jondy, could it?

"What's wrong boo? Looks like you saw a ghost!"

Just then, Max could hear the undeniable sound of her Ninja being started up. She whipped around, ran up the stairs to the door, and crashed through it, with Cindy hot on her heels. All Max could see was Jondy's back as she pulled a wheelie on her brand new Ninja. "Damn. Can this day get any worse?"

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Jondy raced through the streets. Not as fast as she normally liked to do, but hey, she had only been in Seattle for a couple days, and even with her photographic memory, she could still get lost. _This *is* a nice bike. Good thing that girl showed up when she did. I needed a distraction tonight, and stealing a good getaway bike is as good a distraction that I can think of. There was something about that girl though. Her eyes looked so familiar, but I can't place them. She couldn't be from Manticore could she? Maybe Max? Zach said she was in Seattle, but that was awhile ago, and ever since that Eyes Only person alerted us that Lydecker was on to us, she would have moved, wouldn't she? Maybe not. I mean, I'm still in San Fran, but I can't leave that place. I love it too much. Leaving was so hard. I know that Lydecker was on to me, but he'll leave and I can go back. I can't wait to go back. To sit on the Golden Gate, overlooking the city? How could anyone not enjoy that. I'll have to try the Space Needle one of these nights. Not tonight though. Tonight I need some quick cash, so I think a little bit of cat burglary is in order. _Jondy continued through the streets until she reached the more expensive part of town. She stopped at the top of one of the streets and scanned the area looking for possible targets. It was still relatively early, so she had the better part of the night to plan out her course of action. She kept scanning until she focused on one building in particular. She used her enhanced sight to look at the sign on the side of the building. _Foggle Towers. Hmmm. Sounds nice. _She looked up the building, looking in each window to see if there was anything of value. She made a mental note of a few floors, and continued her casing of the place. She ended at the top, the penthouse, and was about to look away when something caught her eye. She focused in even closer, and locked in on her target. _Bingo. That person's loaded. _Jondy continued to eye her prize. It was a simple statue of the Egyptian Goddess Bast. She pulled her gaze away from the windows to look across the street. There was building there that was taller, making for an easy entrance to the roof top of her target building. She revved up her new bike, turned it around and headed away from the buildings towards her current residence. She needed some supplies if she was going to pull this off.

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"I can not believe this."

"Boo, it's ok! We'll find it!"

"You better be right."

Original Cindy had actually managed to convince Max to stay at Crash for awhile and have a couple of beers before she went home to sulk. Max loved that bike more than anything else in the world, and someone actually had the nerve to steal it. Original Cindy could not help but feel guilty, because it was the chick she was trying to hook up with that did it, but there was nothing that she could ever say at this point to make Max feel any better.

Max finally found the energy to look up at Original Cindy, who was seated across from her at one of the tables. "Thanks for the beers boo, it's on me next time."

"No big dealio suga. You know Original Cindy's got your back on this. We'll look high and low tomorrow and find that bike of yours. What say you and Original Cindy go home and sleep the rest of this day away."

Max slipped down off of the high chair that she was sitting in, and walked over to Original Cindy, and gave her a small hug. "Thanks, but I think I'll walk over to Logan's. I feel like sulking to someone else before my evening is complete."

"And then get some much needed comfort, right?"

Max's eyes shot up to Original Cindy's which were filled with a look of complete and utter joy for her friend. "No, but a few games of chess, and a good meal should tie me over until tomorrow."

Original Cindy laughed at Max's futile attempt to deny her relationship with Logan. "Whatever boo. See ya tomorrow." Original Cindy got up and hugged Max, and headed over to the bar to pay their tab as Max walked up the stairs to the door.

Max started walking in the direction of Logan's. _This is going to take forever to get there. Maybe I should just go home. Nah, I feel like I need a good long talk. Original Cindy is a good person to talk to and all, but Logan listens. He isn't always trying to add in his opinion, and I need someone like that to rant to tonight. That's for sure. _Max continued on her way, knowing full well that she would be walking for the next hour or so.

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Jondy roared up to the building across the street from where she eventually wanted to wind up in. She parked her new found toy in the shadows so that no one would see it. She slowly crept up to the front door of the building, and quickly glanced up and down the street to make sure that no one would see her little break and enter. She saw no one, so she silently picked the lock and slipped in.

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Logan was setting up his equipment for another Eyes Only broadcast when he heard a motorcycle engine down below. _Must be Max. I should get this over and done with soon so we can talk when she gets here. _Logan's apartment was dark except for his computer room so that no unnecessary light would interfere with his broadcast. Besides, he had finished everything that he had needed to do that night, and this was his last assignment before he was going to go to bed. _Max doesn't need the lights. I'll just turn them on when I'm done here._

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Jondy slipped in the door of the building, and quickly scanned the area. She looked up to her left, and noticed a small security camera. Careful not to let the camera see her face, she raced to the stairwell, bag in hand. She went up the stairs two by two, and made it to the roof in a few minutes. A normal person would have been exhausted at this point, but Jondy was not a normal person. She opened the door that led out onto the roof, walked over to the edge and looked out to the building a few stories below her, and across the street that held her precious statue. Satisfied with the plan she came up with, Jondy walked back across the roof, and attached her rope clamp to a rung on the floor, and another to her back. She walked the edge of the building, trailing the rope behind her, and stopped, draping the rope over her shoulder. She took a deep breath and jumped. She put her legs straight out behind her, and put both arms out like wings. She flew down until the rope pulled taught, and started to pull her back up. She flew high above her target building, and when she was at the peak of her arc, she cut the rope from her back, allowing her to land softly on the roof. She slid down the embankment that she had landed on, and walked to the skylight that led to her target. She quietly opened the window, and dropped a rope down. Sliding down the rope with ease, and using her catlike skills, Jondy quietly landed on the floor without making a sound. She cautiously walked around the apartment to make sure that no one was around. It was dark, so she assumed no one was home, but assumptions can be deadly things. Suddenly, she could hear a person talking. Jondy froze for a second, but decided to investigate. She quietly walked to a room that was almost completely closed off from the rest of the apartment. She peered around the door frame and saw a man, sitting in a wheelchair talking into a camera. She glanced at the screens surrounding the camera, and held back her breath. _Damn. It's that Eyes Only guy. Oh well, he's busy. Gives me time to case the joint. _Jondy pulled back from the door, and started to tour the apartment, casually grabbing things that were worth something, and stuffed them in her bag. She came around a corner and stopped. _There it is! _Jondy eyed the statue and then carefully picked it up, and placed it in her bag. She started to turn to leave when she heard the chilling sound of a gun being cocked right behind her.

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Logan always knew when Max came into his apartment. He didn't know how, but he always knew. Tonight was no different. Sure, he was kind of expecting her, since he heard the bike, but when he felt a presence in his home, it wasn't hers. It was similar, but not the same. He finished off his broadcast, and quietly pulled his gun out of the drawer beside him. He wheeled out of the room, making as little noise as he could, and when he turned the corner, his heart almost stopped. A person was in his apartment, and was stealing his things. He raised his gun, and cocked it. "Drop it." Memories started to flood back to his first meeting of Max. It all just seemed too familiar, but different at the same time. The girl turned around, and put her hands up in the air in surrender, and dropped her bag. As it hit the floor, it opened partially, and one of the objects fell out of it. Logan looked at the girl. She reminded him so much of Max, but then she didn't. This girl had hair that fell down in curls, but her hair was blonde, not brown. Her skin was pale, not naturally tanned, and her outfit was tight, and black so as to easily blend in with the shadows. Logan looked at the girl's face and noticed that she held the same look of confidence in her eyes that he had only ever seen in Max. Logan then looked at the contents of her bag. He was half expecting it, but it still startled him. _Oh my god. _There, lying half exposed was the statue of Bast. The very same one that Max had tried to steal from him too. _What is with that statue? _Logan looked back at the girl's face. "You have good taste. French, 1920's, attributed to Chitarus." 

"Whoever that is."

"So, what, you liked it because it was shiny?" _Wow, even the conversation is similar._

"No, because it reminds me of someone I once knew."

Both turned to look towards the front door when they heard it quietly open. Jondy took the opportunity to lunge towards Logan and strip him of his gun. Just as quickly, she ran back to her fallen bag and picked it up. She threw the gun across the room, and looked directly into the shocked eyes of the man she was just going to rob. "Look, I'd love to hang and discuss art but I gotta get going."

"Who are you?"

"Let's just say I'm a stranger of the night."

"Logan?" Max's voice could be heard coming closer.

"Sounds like you've got company." Jondy turned towards her rope, but was interrupted by the voice of the girl, whom she had gotten her new bike from, starting to talk to the man.

"There you are! You would never believe what happened to me today. Other than the fact that I had a horrible day, some chick stole my baby!" Max looked at Logan who was watching something else. Max finally realized that there was someone else in the room. She turned to look at the intruder, and recognized her. As she did, anger flooded throughout her body. "Hey!"

Jondy turned at the shout, and realized she didn't have time to scale the rope. She smiled at the girl and looked at Logan once again. "By the way, I love your show." With that, she turned and sprinted towards a window. She crossed her arms over her face and hit the window at a full run. The glass exploded outwards in a diamond shower. Jondy landed with her usual grace and turned to look up at where she had just been. The two people came rushing towards the window, and only looked down at her as she turned away from them, jumped down the remaining stories to her bike, and tore off into the night. 

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	2. A New Job

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Logan wheeled backwards, away from the window, and slowly turned away from the broken shards of glass that were left attached to his wall. He was in shock, not only from having an intruder in his house, but one that obviously was related to Max. "What in the hell was that?"

Max turned at the sound of Logan's voice, but her mind was still going over what had just happened. "As far as I can tell, that was Jondy." Max walked towards where Logan had parked his chair. "But, I don't know for sure. I mean, on the surface, yeah, it's probably her. I ran into her earlier tonight, and Original Cindy told me that this girl's name was Jondy, but the Jondy I knew had brilliant blue eyes, and dark hair like mine. This girl has brown eyes and blonde hair."

Logan watched Max as she sat down on the couch, resting her head in her hand as she propped her arm up against the arm of the couch. "You know Max, there are such things as color contacts. They're hard to find, but I'm sure if she is your Jondy, she would be able to steal them easily if she knew where to look."

Max looked into Logan's eyes. "Yeah, but I haven't changed. Why didn't she recognize me?"

Logan could see the pain that was creeping across Max's face. "I know you don't want to hear this, but, maybe she doesn't want to get to know you. Maybe she's happy with the way her life is now, and doesn't want to worry about screwing up her image of you."

Max looked down at the floor. What Logan was telling her was right, as much as she didn't want to admit it. She herself had built up such a strong image of Zack, and then when she finally found him, he wasn't anything like what she had wanted. Maybe the same thing would happen with Jondy. But, it couldn't be like that with Jondy. Jondy and her were so close. "But why is she here in Seattle then? Wouldn't Zack have told her I was here? If she didn't want to destroy her image of me, why come?"

"I don't know Max."

Max looked up at the broken window. "We're going to have to get someone to come in and fix this. Otherwise it's going to get cold in here."

Logan turned to look at the window, and then looked back at Max and smiled.

"What?"

"Well, since this has happened to me before..."

"What are you getting at Logan?" Max couldn't help but smile.

"I'm just saying. Since this has happened to me before, there's some wood left over from the last time I boarded this up, down in storage. You could go get it and we can board this up."

Max pouted, keeping in with the joking mood that was going on between them at the present moment. "Why do I have to go get it?"

Logan was happy with the way this constant light-hearted bickering was going. He looked down at his chair and then back up to Max with sheepish eyes. "You mean to tell me you expect a man in a wheelchair to go all the way downstairs, pick up some heavy boards, and then come all the way back up? What kind of person are you anyways?"

"What kind of man are you? Making a girl do his dirty work." Max smiled at Logan, and seeing the sheepish look in his eyes, she gave in. "Fine. But you owe me big for this one."

"Oh really? As I may recall, it was YOUR family who broke this window!"

"Hey! We don't know that for sure. All I'm saying is that I expect something in return for busting my ass for you tonight."

"You do, do you?"

"Yeah. I do."

"Well, I'll have to see what I can cook up while you're gone. How's that?"

Max turned her face away from him, and looked back at him with a grin on her face. "I guess that'll have to do. See ya in a bit." Max got up, spun on her heels, and walked out of Logan's apartment, with a grin firmly plastered on her face.

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Jondy flopped down on her futon, and pulled her bag of goodies beside her. She started to root through the bag, and pulled out her prized possession. The statue of the Egyptian goddess Bast. The goddess who comprehends all goddesses, eye of Ra, protector, avenger, and destroyer, giver of life, who lives forever. But most of all, the statue represented something much greater to Jondy. It reminded her of her sister Max. Max, the one she had the most in common with. The one she had to leave behind. The one that more than likely didn't make it out alive. But then again, maybe she did. _That girl. The one at the club. The one I acquired my bike from. The one at the apartment. It couldn't be Max though. If it was, she would have followed me out the window. No, she wouldn't have, because that would have exposed her to that man. But if she just walked into his apartment, he must know her. He must know something about her. No, he wouldn't. Max is too smart for that. She wouldn't let anyone know who she was. Especially Eyes Only. He would turn her in. It couldn't have been Max. It just couldn't be. _ Jondy sat up, and put the statue back into her bag. _I'll try selling these tomorrow. Maybe since I'm going to be here for awhile while Lydecker scopes out San Fran, I should get a job. I'd get one at the same place that that Original Cindy girl works at, but she said her boss sucked. Maybe I'll find another bike messenger service. It'd be great exercise. _Jondy got up from her futon, and pulled it down so that it formed a bed. She walked over to the closet where she kept her bed sheets, and on the way, shoved her bag into a cabinet. She pulled out the necessary blankets, and a couple of pillows. Jondy liked the fact that she never needed sleep, but she figured now would be as good a time as ever to get a couple of hours of shut-eye in. Who knows what the next week would bring for her. After making her bed, Jondy went into the bathroom to get ready for bed. She quickly brushed her teeth, and as she was washing her face, she noticed a slight tremor in her right hand. _Damn it. _Jondy opened up the medicine cabinet that was right in front of her, and pulled out her bottle of Tryptophan. She hastily opened the bottle, and reached in with her fingers to pull out two of the pills. She popped them in her mouth and dry-swallowed. She watched her own eyes in the mirror as she waited for the medicine to take effect. She moved her eyes to look down at her hand, and it finally stopped moving. Letting out a big sigh, Jondy replaced her pills in the cabinet, and walked out into the living room of her place. She walked through her small apartment, and ended up at her closet doors. She opened them up and pulled out an oversized t-shirt, and a pair of cotton pants. She changed right there, and threw her catsuit in a heap on the floor of the closet. Closing the doors, Jondy turned and headed towards her bed. Suddenly feeling very tired, Jondy crept under the covers, and closed her eyes, thinking of the day's events.

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After much arguing and difficulties, Max and Logan finally got the window boarded up. Exhausted, Max collapsed on the couch and watched Logan as he wheeled up to her. "How are you going to get home?"

"Why, what time is it?"

"Late."

Max looked down at her watch and frowned. Four o'clock. "Oh geez, I have to be at work in like three hours. It's going to take me at least half that time to walk home. Good thing I don't need a lot of sleep." 

"You can always stay here you know, and I could drive you to work in the morning."

Max looked up at Logan. She could see that he was silently pleading with her to stay, but she knew she couldn't. "Thanks, but I better be going. Good luck on finding someone to fix that window. I'll be by tomorrow. Maybe you could find something on Jondy for me?"

Logan was disappointed that Max wasn't going to stay, but he knew that it was a long shot anyways. "Sure. I'll see you tomorrow."

Max got up and nodded. "Yeah. Tomorrow." Max walked around the couch and headed towards the door. Logan watched her as she went, and after she was out of his sight, he could hear the front door open and close. He shook his head, and wheeled towards his bedroom. _I'm tired. I'll worry about finding someone to fix the window in the morning._

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Jondy woke up after only a few hours. She got up and staggered to the kitchen to make herself some coffee. She sat down at her kitchen table and slowly sipped the refreshing liquid from her mug, while staring off into nothingness, her mind free of any thoughts. After finishing her coffee, Jondy got up and started to get ready for the day. On her way out, she grabbed a piece of toast, and walked over to her motorbike. She wheeled it out of her apartment, and headed down the streets, looking for a payphone so she could look up any bike messenger services in town. She pulled over at the first payphone that she saw, and parked her bike. She pulled out the very well-worn yellow pages, and starting flipping through the pages. Finally ending at the one she wanted, Jondy traced her finger down the page, and stopped at the list of bike messenger services. _Better Messenger Services, Deliveries Are Us, Jam Pony X-Press, Pickup and Delivery Service, Rapid Delivery Service, Send and Receive Messenger Services._ _Hmmm, I like the name of this Jam Pony one, but I think I'll go with this Rapid Delivery Service. It sounds more like my style, quick and to the point. _Jondy quickly embedded the address of the company into her mind, as well as a few others, got on her bike, and made her way to the headquarters of Rapid Delivery Service. She parked her bike outside of the building and walked in. The building seemed alive with people. They were everywhere. Coming, and going, taking packages, and bringing others back. Jondy looked around to get a sense of where she may soon be working. The walls of the place looked completely sterile, just a simple tan color. Near the back of the building were a row of lockers, and a couple of doors that must have led to bathrooms or storage rooms. To her left were a bunch of tables and chairs under a large TV set, that a bunch of people were hanging out at. As she walked in further, she could see a desk with a bunch of packages piled neatly behind it. Jondy walked up to the desk and rang the little bell that was sitting on it. A short, bald man jumped up in a motion that would have startled a normal person, but Jondy stayed perfectly still. "Excuse me sir, I was wondering who I would talk to about getting a job here. I'm willing to work a lot of hours, and I am very self-motivated. I have very good communication skills and I get along well with others."

"Well, I can always use a few more people around here. Even with the Pulse, people still are sending out packages at a daily rate. What's your name?"

Jondy looked at the man standing in front of her, and stuck her hand out to shake his hand. "Jondy."

The man took Jondy's hand and shook it. "Pleased to meet you Jondy, I'm Barry. I'm basically the boss around here. So you want a job, hmmm? Well..." Barry reached under the desk and pulled out a piece of paper. "All you need to do is fill this out, and we'll get you started today. Do you have your own bike?"

Jondy took the piece of paper and pen that Barry extended to her, and quickly glanced it over. "Actually I don't right now. Is there by any chance a bike here that I could borrow?"

"Of course. I'll get Jared to go in the back and grab one for you."

Jondy smiled at the man. "Thanks. I'll just go fill this out." Jondy turned away from Barry, and headed over towards the area that housed the tables and chairs. She sat down at an empty table, and began to fill out the form. Just as she was nearing the end, a voice interrupted her concentration.

"You Jondy?"

Jondy looked up and saw a thin man, about 25 looking down at her, with a bike leaning against him. "Yeah." 

"I'm Jared. Here's your bike." The man leaned the bike against the table that Jondy was sitting at, and turned to walk away. Jondy could hear a phone ringing, and noticed that it was coming from the man's coat. He reached into his pocket, and started talking into the phone. As he talked, Jondy took in his appearance. He seemed to be only a bit taller than her, he had dark brown eyes, and dark brown hair, that was almost completely covered by the baseball cap that he wore. His jeans were extremely baggy, and might even have been dangerous to ride in. He wore an oversized t-shirt, and a dark blue vest. His face was very pale, almost as though he was either extremely stressed out, or just plain tired.

"He's always on that phone."

Jondy broke her eyes away from Jared to look towards the voice that was talking to her. She turned to see that a boy had sat across from her at her table. She studied him closely, much in the same way that she had Jared, only moments before. This guy, like Jared, was extremely skinny. His face was pale as well, but his was more from lack of sun, than anything else, something that was not uncommon in rainy Seattle. He had spiked blonde hair, and bright blue eyes. It also appeared as though he was trying unsuccessfully to grow a beard, because all he had were a few straggly hairs on the bottom of his chin. _He's kind of cute. He totally reminds me of that guy whose apartment I broke into last night. Not quite as handsome, but pretty close. _Jondy looked at the guy's clothes. He wore baggy blue jeans, although not as baggy as Jared's, a tight white t-shirt, and a bright orange vest that had obviously seen better days.

"Jared's into the whole dealing thing, you know, like with gangsters and stuff. That's why he's always so stressed out. Always talking on the phone trying to make another deal. Oh well, he's making more money than I am. Hi, I'm Justin. What's your name?"

Jondy smiled at Justin. She got the feeling that the two of them would become close friends in the not too distant future. "Jondy."

Justin smiled back at Jondy. "Jondy, that's an interesting name, how did you get it?"

Not even fazed, Jondy started into her well used lie. She hated lying, but it was better than trying to explain everything about her life, not to mention, less dangerous. "My parents were into the whole strange name thing. And, this is the one that I got. I like it though, because I've never met anyone else with the same name."

"I'd guess not. So what are you doing in Seattle? I've never seen you before, and you look a little too tan to have lived here for any amount of time."

"Yeah, I'm actually from San Francisco. My roommate's parents came to live with her for a few months while they searched for a permanent residence of their own. I hate being crammed into a little space with a lot of people, so I decided that I'd come here while they were at my place."

"But why come to Seattle? Why not just hang out in L.A. or something closer to San Francisco?"

"Well, when I was younger, I got separated from one of my sisters, and I heard awhile ago that she might be living here. So, I kind of thought that while I was out of a home, I might as well go somewhere that I might have family." _I hope he buys all of this. It's not completely a lie. I mean, the part about my roommate, sure, that's a lie, I don't even have a roommate, but the part about finding one of my sisters is partly true. Ok, it looks like he's buying this. Good. I don't want to alienate myself on my first day on the job._

"Makes sense. Well, I've got to get going, and start delivering some packages. I'm sure I'll see you again soon. It was nice meeting you."

"Yeah, you too." Jondy watched as Justin got up, smiled at her, and walked out of the building, clutching a package in his arms. Jondy quickly finished filling out the form, and walked back over to the front desk, wheeling her bike beside her. "Here you go Barry, is that all you need?"

Barry scanned the form, and nodded his approval. "Yup, that's it. You can start right now if you would like. Do you need someone to go with you on your rides? I'm sure I could find..."

"No, that's fine. I think I can handle it myself."

Barry looked at his watch, and then looked at Jondy. "Well, it's getting close to closing time, so I'll only send you on one run. It's an easy one too. Here you go, it's for a ..." Barry grabbed a small package, and looked at the address label. "...a Reagan Ronald. Jam Pony X-Press." Barry looked up at Jondy and smiled. "Remember..."

"Bring back the signature. Got it."

"Good girl. You'll work out just fine here. Tomorrow we'll set you up with a locker, and get you a backpack to carry these packages in. See you in about an hour!"

Jondy took the package from Barry, smiled, wheeled her bike out of the building, and started out on her very first run at her new job. She wound her way through Seattle's streets, and only found herself slightly lost a few times. Eventually she made it to the Jam Pony building. She parked her bike outside, and walked into the bustling environment that was so different from her work place. Unlike the plain walls of Rapid Delivery Service, Jam Pony's walls were filled with graffiti and murals that added a lot of color to the place. People were everywhere talking to their friends and co-workers, as a very high strung man behind the desk shouted out deliveries that no one was willing to pick up. _Good thing I didn't pick this place. I don't think I could handle this level of chaos. _Jondy walked up to the desk. "Excuse me, I have a delivery for a Reagan Ronald. Do you know where I could find him?"

"That would be me girly. Thank you, now, if you would please move, I'm trying to run a business here."

"I need a signature." Jondy thrust her signature pad in front of her customer, and as soon as he finished signing it, she snatched it back away from him. _The faster I get out of here, the better. _Jondy headed out towards the door, grabbed her bike, and started on her way back to her own headquarters. As she was riding, she kept having the feeling that someone was following her, but every time she looked back, there was no one there. Shrugging off the feeling, Jondy rode into her place of work, and stopped at the desk. "Here's the signature Barry. Is that all for today?"

Barry took the signature pad out of Jondy's hands, and looked it over. "That's it Jondy. If you'll just put the bike over in the back there, you can use it tomorrow as well, and until you can afford your own."

"Thanks Barry, I'll see you tomorrow!" Jondy waved goodbye to her new boss, and headed out the door, taking the keys for her motorbike out of the pocket in her jacket. Maybe it was because she was looking down, or maybe it was because it came so fast, but either way, Jondy could not react to what happened next. One moment she was calmly walking towards her bike, the next she was being slammed into a wall with an arm pressed firmly against her neck. Jondy did not even have the time to react. 

"Those keys would be mine."

Those were the last words that Jondy heard before she blacked out.

******************


	3. A Complication

******************

Jondy woke up with a splitting headache. Because of that, her senses weren't all that they could be. Slowly taking in deep breaths to calm the pounding, Jondy sunk into her pillow. _Wow, I've NEVER slept this long before. I don't even remember going to bed. _Jondy rolled over, and quickly realized that she wasn't even in a bed, but on a couch. _Man, I must've had a lot to drink last night. I didn't even pull out the futon. Wait a minute. I don't remember going out last night. The last thing that I remember is walking out of work, and.... Oh my god. _Jondy's eyes sprang open, and she looked at the couch that she was laying on. It wasn't her familiar futon. It was someone else's. She quickly turned around to face the room that she was in, and tried to jump up when she saw a figure sitting across from her, but the figure ran and held her down. Jondy struggled against the force, but couldn't move an inch. Whoever was holding her down was incredibly strong. "Let me go. Who are you?"

"Question is, who are you, and what gave you the notion that stealing my bike was a good idea?"

Jondy instantly recognized the voice as that of the girl whose bike she stole, and the one that she saw in that apartment that she had most recently broken into. Finding out that she kind of knew the person who was holding her down, Jondy relaxed a bit. "Look, I'm sorry about your bike, but since I'm assuming that you're the one who knocked me out, you have it back, so if you don't mind, I think I'll be leaving." Jondy went to sit up, but still couldn't move. Her vision was slowly coming into focus, and she could see the features of the girl a little bit more.

"I don't think so. Who are you?"

"Why should I tell you?" Jondy spit out between gritted teeth.

"Because you're one being held. Not me."

Jondy could hear the annoyance in the voice of her holder. Finally her vision came into focus, and she could clearly see the girl holding her down. Sure enough, it was the girl whose bike Jondy stole. Her face was right in Jondy's and so Jondy was able to fully take in her features. Her gaze fell on the girl's eyes. They were so familiar. They had to belong to her sister. Jondy went limp on the couch and relaxed against Max's grip. "My name's Jondy."

Max abruptly let go of the girl on the couch. She couldn't believe it. The girl said her name was Jondy. No one has that name. It had to be her sister. Max could feel tears starting to well up in her eyes. "Jondy?"

Jondy quickly sat up now that no one was holding her down, and went to leave, but stopped when she noticed two things. One, the girl wasn't doing anything to stop her, and two, the girl was crying. "Yeah, that's my name. So what's yours? Or am I not privy to this information."

Max looked at Jondy, sitting on the couch. "Don't you recognize me?" Max needed to know.

Jondy looked at the girl standing in front of her. Giving herself more time to think, she looked around the apartment. She was in the apartment that she had broken into the night before. She looked towards the window that she had escaped from, and saw that it was boarded up. Looking out the other windows, Jondy could see that it was still dark, so she assumed that she had only been out for a couple of hours. As she scanned the place, thoughts were rolling through her head, and all of them centered on her sister. The one she had to leave behind. The one she thought was dead. Max. Jondy looked at the girl standing in front of her and swallowed. This was it. She finally found the only person at Manticore that she got along with. Would she live up to the image that Jondy had created for her? The last time that she talked to Zack, he had told her to not trust Max if she ever saw her. She had become too independent for her own good, and Zack felt that she was a danger to all of the kids. Jondy didn't care. She had found Max, or rather, Max had found her. Either way, they were together again. Jondy stared through Max's eyes, and finally, she found her voice "Max?"

*************************

Jondy was walking around the apartment in some of Logan's clothes that she had borrowed from him to sleep in. All three had decided that it would be best for her to crash at Logan's, so they could talk and catch up on things. Not wanting to waste any time by driving to her own apartment, Jondy decided that it would be easier to just use some of Logan's clothes, and being the wonderful, caring person that she was quickly learning he was, he had given her a pile to choose from. Jondy had gladly accepted the clothes, and chose what she felt most comfortable in at night. She had on a very large t-shirt, and a pair of sweatpants that were way too big on her, so she had to roll them a few times at the waist. She had her hair tied back in a high ponytail, and as she moved towards the couch with a plate of food in her hand, she could feel the eyes of the other two occupants on her. As she sat down, she looked over at Logan and Max, both of whom were starring at her with confused and amazed looks on their faces. "What?"

Max shook her head as if to clear the thoughts that she was having and smiled. "I...we...I.... How can you wear your hair like that?"

Jondy looked down, reflexively touched her hair, and then looked back at Max. "What?"

"I mean, doesn't it bother you that your barcode is out there for all the world to see?"

"Who cares? I mean, you've got one, and he's obviously seen one before, so what does it matter?"

"I don't know, I just can never bring myself to do that. You just seem so carefree."

"Yeah well, you know."

Max walked over to the couch and sat down beside Jondy, who was now shoving food into her mouth. "No, I don't. I mean, back at Manticore, you were always so shy. You always followed orders, and never, well..."

"Seemed to be able to do anything by myself?"

"Um...yeah. I mean...."

Jondy reluctantly put her plate of food down on the table and turned to look at Max. "Sweetie, it's ok. I know. But being out in the world has changed me. Just look at you! You were always the brave one, but now you're out saving the world."

"Yeah, but I've stayed basically true to form. The only thing that has really changed is that, well, I don't steal anymore." Max stole a quick look at Logan, who was smiling at her.

"Is that some kind of jab at me?"

"No! It's not...."

Jondy dissolved into a fit of laughter, and turned around and hugged Max. "It's ok. I know what you mean. Come on, where's your sense of humor today?"

With the tension finally gone between the two siblings, Max started to laugh as well, and returned Jondy's hug. "I'm beginning to think that you stole that too."

As the two girls were bonding, Logan quietly wheeled away, knowing that the two of them would be up all night if it's true what Max had told him about neither she nor Jondy ever needing sleep. As he got in his bedroom, he could hear the faint sounds of giggles coming from his living room. Something that he never heard Max do. Giggle. Even he had to let a chuckle out about that one. _I'll have to tease her about that tomorrow._

***********************

"So Jondy, you have to tell me what you've been up to. What did you do after we escaped, and just what exactly is the dealio with your hair and eyes? I mean, that's why I wasn't sure it was you."

"Sure Max, I think you're just slipping, I mean, I recognized you right away!"

Max jokingly shoved Jondy. "No you didn't."

"Yeah, I know. If I had known it was you, I probably wouldn't have swiped your ride."

"Yeah, about that..."

"So anyways, about my life." Jondy smiled at Max as she saw that Max was amused at her changing the conversation so quickly. "After the escape, I basically wandered about the country. I was constantly on the move, because Lydecker always seemed to be right behind me. Finally, I fell into this great family. I was about 12 at the time, and it seemed perfect. The people were a bit older, but they always wanted a daughter, so they welcomed me with open arms. I never was really too attached to them, because, you know, I could've have had to leave at any time, but they were great. They gave me everything I could ever ask for. As I got older, and was making more and more friends, a lot of them were into dying their hair and such. I asked my mother if I could do it too, but she was pretty well against it. Finally, she caved, and I dyed my hair blonde. Then it hit me. Lydecker was looking for a girl with dark brown hair, and bright blue eyes. Since I had already changed my hair, I figured, I'd do the eyes too. So, I found a place that sold color contacts, swung in one night, and took their entire collection of hazel. And with those, I looked like a totally different person."

"Wow."

"Yeah. The coolest thing was, was this one day, I was having the crappiest day. Anyway, Lydecker had tracked me down, and I was about to turn and run, when I remembered that he was looking for someone else. He looked right at me, and continued on. Ever since then, I haven't had to worry, until now."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, with Zack's little confession to you, and being flushed out by your Eyes Only guy, Lydecker knew I was in San Francisco. I got out as soon as he arrived. I figured I would leave while he searched the place, and then go back when he left."

"So why did you come to Seattle?"

"Well, to be honest with you, Zack told me that you were here. I kind of figured that you would have left as well after that broadcast, but I guess you didn't."

"So you've talked to Zack?"

"Unfortunately yes. He found me right after I moved to San Fran, and hooked me up with his phone line."

"So you know where the others are?"

"I used to, but since everyone is on the move again, I don't know."

"How come you never came to find me?"

"Because Zack told me I couldn't trust you."

"And you believed him?"

"Have I ever?"

"Good point."

"So, that's why I'm here, and now I've found you! So, what have you been up to?"

Max shifted a bit on the couch before answering. "Well, after the escape, I was like you, and moved around a lot. I fell in with this foster family, but the father liked to beat up on me and his daughter, so I left right after the pulse hit. After that, I floated around again, and wound up here. I got a job, an apartment, met some friends, and decided to stay."

"Cool."

*********************

The two girls spent the rest of the night talking. Neither one of them concerned with the time, until they heard Logan moving about. "What time is it?"

Max looked at her watch. "Seven."

Jondy jumped up. "Oh jeez. I have to be at work in a little bit, and I still have to get home, and shower! How am I going to have time? I don't think it would look very good if I showed up late on my first full day of work."

Max stood up as a plan worked its way through her head. "Why don't you take a shower here, and I'll go to your place and pick up some clothes. My boss doesn't really care if I'm late, so how about that?"

"That'd be great! Thanks Max!"

"No big dealio. See you in an hour." Max leaned over and hugged her sister, and turned and walked out the door. Jondy smiled, knowing that she finally found the one she thought she had lost.

***************************

Jondy came out of the shower with only a towel wrapped around her. Max hadn't returned yet with her clothes, so Jondy was content with parading around in the towel. _Besides, that Logan is one heck of a hottie. Maybe since he's single, I can get him to notice me a little bit easier. I mean, what's better than having an X-5 as a two week girlfriend. No commitments, and always willing to get down. How many guys would turn that down? And, I've got a killer tan goin' for me here, and, you know what? I'm lookin' good to-day. _Jondy was still lost in thoughts when Logan came wheeling into her room. 

"Oh sorry, I thought you were still in the shower, I'll go and see if Max is here yet."

"No wait! It's ok, don't worry about it. What did you come in here for anyway?"

Logan felt a little flustered. _This girl certainly doesn't look as good as Max did in a towel, but hey, it's a girl in a towel, and she's in my apartment! _Logan shook his head, and looked up at Jondy. "I was just going to bring you this robe. Thought you might like it." He grabbed the robe from his lap and handed it to Jondy, who took it, and threw it on the bed without even looking at it. Logan suddenly felt tense, as though something was going to happen, but he couldn't put his finger on what it could be.

"So what's the dealio with you and Max?"

Logan could only laugh at Jondy. She was so similar to Max, she even had the same lingo.

Not understanding what Logan was laughing about, Jondy had to ask. "What?"

Logan continued to chuckle slightly as he looked into Jondy's eyes. "It's just that you are so similar to Max. Not only do you talk like her, you even switch conversations at the drop of a hat like she does."

Jondy smiled. "Yeah well, when you live with someone for 9 years, you tend to start to understand how they think."

"Yeah, I guess you would."

Still smiling, Jondy fell into the depths of Logan's eyes. "Now who's changing the subject. So, like I asked before, what's the dealio with you and Max?"

Logan looked down at the floor. This was always a touchy subject for him, and he still couldn't answer the question properly. "We're partners. Business partners. And, really good friends."

"As in...?"

Still staring at his feet Logan shook his head. "No, just really good friends. I think we both feel that we shouldn't go any further, for fear of ruining a wonderful friendship."

Jondy was relieved at his answer. "Well good, so then she wouldn't mind if I did this." Jondy quickly closed the distance between her and Logan, and sat down in his lap. She cupped her hands around his face, and brought it up so that her lips could touch his, and once they touched she shifted in Logan's lap so that she could put more force behind the kiss.

"Jondy, I..." Max walked into the room and saw something that made her heart skip a beat. Her sister was sitting in the lap of her best friend, who could possibly have been more, wearing only a towel, and kissing him. Max dropped the clothes that she had in her hand, spun around, and ran out of the apartment as fast as her feet would allow.

***********************


	4. The Fight

***********************

Everything happened so fast that Logan didn't even have time to react. One second, he was thinking thoughts about Jondy that he shouldn't have been, then she was in his lap kissing him furiously, and then, the worst possible thing in the world that could happen, happened. Max walked in on the little situation, and took it in the worst possible light. As soon as he heard Max's voice, Logan ripped himself away from Jondy's grasp, but it wasn't quick enough, and Max was out the door. "Max, wait!" Logan started to roll towards the door, and his movement caused Jondy to move off of his lap. He made it to his front door, and caught Max by the hand before she could leave. "Max." She wouldn't even look at him, so he pulled her arm towards him, causing her to look in his direction.

"What?"

"Max, we have to talk about this."

"Why? I'm sure my sister will make a great girlfriend."

"I don't want her as my girlfriend."

"Why not?"

Logan could only look away from Max. How could he tell her that the reason why he didn't want her sister as a girlfriend was because he wanted her as his girlfriend.

Max began to feel even more uncomfortable than she already was. "It's not like you owe me an explanation or anything."

Logan couldn't even look in Max's eyes as he responded. "I know."

"You don't want to talk about it? Fine." Max started to pull away again, but was once again stopped by Logan, who now had a smirk on his face, causing Max to feel even more repulsed.

"There's no reason for you to get jealous."

Max pulled away from Logan's grasp. This time making sure he couldn't pull her back. She wanted to leave. Now. "I once had a conversation very similar to this, and the person told me that of course there was no reason to be jealous, because you and I don't have that kind of relationship."

Logan's heart skipped a beat. It was he who had said that line, and now Max was using it on him. He couldn't look at her. He had hurt her once with that line, and now, it was being used on him for the exact same purpose, and he could only respond in the same way she had, all those months ago. "Right."

Max turned around, feeling hurt by his response, but knowing full well that that was the response she was expecting. She left his apartment for the day, and at this point forever, but she knew, deep down inside, that she would be back.

Logan wheeled away from his door, and rolled into his computer room, where he sat, dejected.

********************

Jondy could feel Logan tense, the second she put her lips on his, but she just figured that it was because he wasn't expecting her to jump him. But, all of the tension, multiplied ten-fold when Max had to come in the room. As soon as Max had come in and had seen what was going on, Logan had pushed Jondy off of him, and went chasing after Max. _I thought he said that there was nothing going on between the two of them. That's weird. _Jondy crept to the bedroom door, and decided to listen in on her sister's and Logan's discussion. 

__

"Max, we have to talk about this."

"Why? I'm sure my sister will make a great girlfriend."

Sweet deal. Even Max thinks Logan and I should be together. If she thinks that, then why was he so defensive when she came in on us?

"I don't want her as my girlfriend."

Ouch, that one hurt.

"Why not?"

Yeah, why not Logan?

"It's not like you owe me an explanation or anything."

__

"I know."

Hmmm, maybe he is considering it.

"You don't want to talk about it? Fine." 

"There's no reason for you to get jealous."

Oh, you better not believe that Max, because there is totally a reason for you to get jealous.

"I once had a conversation very similar to this, and the person told me that of course there was no reason to be jealous, because you and I don't have that kind of relationship."

Whoa, that was a cheap shot. I wonder if that conversation was between the two of them. From the sound of her voice I think it was, and it hurt her when she was told that.

"Right."

__

And Logan's hurt now. They do have something going on, but it's nothing that either of them have really acted on. That's why he said there was nothing, but that's also why he tensed up when I kissed him, and why he went after her. He wants to prove to her that she is the only one for him. And he failed miserably at it. The only bad thing here is that now I don't get to have him. Oh well. At least I got to kiss him!

Jondy shrugged her shoulders, bent down to pick up the clothes Max had dropped on the floor, and went into the bathroom to change. After changing, she went out into the apartment, and could see Logan in his computer room. Jondy walked up to the doorway and leaned against the frame, cocking her one hip out, and putting her one hand on that hip. She could see that Logan had noticed her out of the corner of his eye, and she was just about to talk, when he did.

"Max, I'm sorry."

"For what? I thought you said you two weren't involved."

Logan started when he heard Jondy's voice instead of Max's. He quickly looked up at Jondy in surprise, and then once again buried his face in his hands. "Jesus. You two even stand the same way."

"Do we kiss the same way?"

Logan had to look up at this question. "Excuse me?"

"Come on Logan. I heard your little conversation with her when she was leaving."

Logan muttered to himself, knowing full well that Jondy could hear every word he was saying. "Damn it. She even listens in on conversations that she shouldn't. Just like Max."

Jondy could hear Logan's comments, but chose to ignore them. "Anyways... I heard your little conversation with Max, and judging from the way you two were talking to each other, there is some serious sexual tension going on between the two of you. And, as well, your reaction to me kissing you seemed to be one of disappointment, and that isn't a reaction that I normally get from guys. So, the only way you would be disappointed is if you were wishing that I was Max."

"Does everyone from Manticore have to be involved in my personal life?"

Jondy smiled. "Just the ones that you put up for the night."

Logan chuckled a little. "I'll have to remember that."

"Well, I'll go talk to Max, because I think out of the two of us, she'll be less inclined to kick my ass. She'll have a tougher time doing it mind you, but it'll be more fun." Jondy turned on her heels and started to head out the door.

"Jondy wait."

Jondy turned back to see Logan wheeling up to her.

"I'm sorry about..."

"It's ok. I didn't know. Thanks for letting me stay the night though. Oh, and for the food last night. It was wonderful!"

"You can stay for breakfast if you'd like."

"Nah, as tempting as that offer is, I think I better get to Max pretty soon, because when she gets time to think about things, she gets even more angry than she was in the first place, so the sooner I talk to her, the better. Good luck with her tonight though."

"What makes you think she'll even talk to me again."

"Oh don't worry. I was always close to her. Once I'm done talking to her, she'll be on a better mind track, and will be at your place tonight." And with that, Jondy turned, and headed out the door, making her way to work so that she could grab a few packages to deliver around the Jam Pony area, thus giving her the chance to talk to Max.

************************

Max furiously slammed her locker shut. _Why is this bothering me? It shouldn't matter. It's because you walked in on who was supposed to be your best friend and sister, and your supposed best friend kissing. And the nerve of him to say that it didn't mean anything. If it didn't mean anything, then why was Jondy curled up so comfortably in his lap. This is why I'm not supposed to give a damn about anything. Because if I didn't, none of this would be bothering me. Thank god Cindy isn't here right now. I don't think I could handle talking to her. _Max stormed up to Normal's desk to get a package, but for once he wasn't there to hand one out to her. Not being in the most patient mood at the current moment, Max started to yell. "Yo Normal! I know that we don't normally deliver these packages willingly, but come on! At least give a girl one so that she can make some money. Normal! I'm not in the mood today!"

Finally Normal came out of the back room, and shoved a package into Max's hands, glaring at her the entire time. Max threw him a forced smile, and blazed out of Jam Pony.

**************************

Jondy made it to work as fast as she could, and actually made it on time. "Hey Barry!" Jondy strolled up to the front desk. "Hey, I should have my own ride by tomorrow." _After I fence those things I got from Logan. _"Is that ok?"

Barry looked up at Jondy and smiled. "Of course Jondy. You can use the spare again today. I set up a locker for you in the back. You'll find a backpack, the jacket all employees wear, and a Rapid Delivery Service hat."

"Wow, that's great Barry, thanks! Which one is it?"

"It's right beside Justin's. He's back there now, so he can help answer any questions you may have."

"Thanks Barry." Jondy turned to go to find her locker.

"Oh, and Jondy?"

Jondy stopped to look at Barry.

"As soon as you're ready, you come out here, and we'll start you on your day, ok?"

"Sure thing." Jondy walked to the back of the building, and saw Justin standing at his locker, exchanging things in there, with things from his bag. Once again he had on a pair of slightly baggy jeans and his orange vest. And of course his hair was all nice and spikey. "Hey Justin!"

Justin turned around at the sound of Jondy's voice. "Hey Jondy! How goes the battle today?"

"Can't complain. I got to stay at my sister's boyfriend's house, and damn can he cook!"

"Your sister? You found her already?"

"Yeah, we kind of bumped into each other last night. Total coincidence."

"I'll say."

"Yeah, she works at Jam Pony and I'm going to see if Barry has any deliveries... which locker is mine?..."

Justin pointed to the one off to the right of his.

"...thanks...any deliveries around Jam Pony so I can meet her for lunch." Jondy opened her locker and pulled out the hat and bag, put the hat on backwards on her head, and slung the backpack over her shoulders. It was actually warm out for once, so Jondy left the jacket in her locker, even though had it been cold, she wouldn't have needed it anyways. She looked up at Justin, and as soon as she made eye contact, he glanced away. "What?"

"Oh, it's nothing."

"Come on Justin, what's the dealio?"

"Well, I was going to ask if you wanted to come to lunch with me, but since you're meeting your sister... never mind."

Jondy closed her locker and turned to smile at Justin. "I'm sorry Justin, but how about tomorrow? I'd love to have lunch with you."

"Really? That'd be great! Well, I better be going. See you later today!"

"Yeah, see ya Justin!" _Damn! Those eyes of his are just amazing! So similar to Logan's. I can have me my own little Logan, since the original is spoken for. I wonder if Justin is as great a kisser as Logan? Well, I'll find out soon enough. _Jondy made a quick trip to the bathroom, which was surprisingly clean, and headed out to face the day. She strolled up to the desk and waited for Barry to finish up with another rider. "Hey Barry, I'm meeting my sister for lunch, and I was wondering if you had any packages around Jam Pony that I could deliver."

"Um, let me see." Barry started to go through his list, and picked up packages as he came across their addresses. "Here Jondy, here's eight. These should keep you busy until lunch."

Jondy took the packages, and place them in her bag. "Thanks Barry, I'll see you in a few hours! And don't worry, I'll bring back the signatures."

"Good girl."

Jondy walked up to her loaned bike, and pushed it out to start her day.

**************************

Jondy had finished delivering her packages in a couple of hours, leaving her plenty of time to sit and wait for Max. Right around noon, Jondy saw Max walk in the door. She parked her bike, and started talking to a couple of her co-workers. Jondy knew that Max would soon sense her presence, so she patiently waited. Sure enough, after a couple of minutes, Max looked in Jondy's direction, and when she was her, Max quickly ended her conversation, and turned to leave. Jondy quickly got up from the bench she was sitting on, and ran after Max. She caught up to her right away. "Max, wait!"

Max spun around and shot Jondy a nasty glare. "I don't want to talk to you right now."

Max turned to leave, but Jondy caught her shoulder, and held her in place. "Max, I wouldn't have kissed him if I knew he was your boyfriend."

"He's not my boyfriend."

"Mmmm hmmm, and that's why we're all buddy-buddy right now. Come on Max, if he isn't your boyfriend, then why are you so angry at me?"

__

She's got me there. I don't have a reason to be angry at her. And, this is Jondy! How could I ever be angry at Jondy? "I'm sorry Jondy. I'm angry at Logan, and I shouldn't be taking it out on you."

"Why are you angry at Logan? Is it because he was kissing me?"

"No! It's just that..."

"Because he wasn't you know."

"Wasn't what?"

"Kissing me. It was all me. He was pretty upset about the whole situation actually. The poor guy's terrified that he's never going to see you again."

"Why does he think that?"

"Probably because of the way you stormed out of there. He was hurt when you told him that you and he didn't have 'that kind of relationship'."

"He's upset?"

"Yeah, and I think you should go over there tonight to see him. But anyways, I have to get back to work. Come see me sometime to tell me what happens." With that, Jondy walked to her bike, and pedaled away, leaving Max to explain the whole conversation to Original Cindy, who just happened to witness it all.

************************

__

I can't believe Original Cindy had to hear my conversation with Jondy. What a job that was to explain what it all meant, without explaining what it all meant. What a day. Max turned a corner on her motorcycle that would have sent a normal human being flying out of control. _What do I do about Logan though? Is Jondy covering up for him? Nah, she wouldn't that, but then again, he hasn't paged me all day. But Jondy did say he was hurt by what I said. Well maybe he should just suck it up. That's what I did when he said that to me. I'm not going to go see him. I'll just wait until he pages me._

**************************

Max stood in front of Logan's door, berating herself for caving. _He didn't even page me, and yet, here I am. Just like the good little soldier that I am. Well, here goes nothing. _Max reached up and placed her finger over the button of the doorbell. After a few moments of hesitation, she could feel the button moving beneath her touch, and she could hear the ring of the bell inside Logan's apartment.

**************************


	5. A Problem

A/N- I do not own the songs used in this chapter. They are the sole property of the people who wrote them.

**************************

No one came to the door. Max, was thoroughly confused, because Jondy had said that Logan was going to be there tonight. Max rang the bell again. Still, no one answered the door. _That's odd. Maybe he's just expecting me to come in. _Max decided that this was the best plan, so she squatted down and proceeded to pick the lock. Once inside, she walked around, surveying the place for any kind of life. "Logan! Hey! Logan! Are you here?" Max went to each room, but found no one. She ended up in the kitchen, hoping that maybe Logan was just brooding, and was waiting until she saw him to start laying it on her for hurting him so badly. But, just like in every other room, there was no one in the kitchen. There was however, a note on the table. Max went over to pick it up, and started to read. There were two separate sheets. One with a letter printed on it, and the other had some kind of song. Max read the letter first.

_Max,_

As I look back over our relationship, I realize how much I have hurt you over the past few months. Telling you that we don't have 'that kind of relationship' was probably the dumbest thing I could've ever said to you, and I know that now, after having it being told to my face. I only hope that you can forgive me for what happened today. You have to realize that Jondy's a nice kid, but, she is nothing like you. It just shows how terrified I am of our relationship, since I am not even here to tell you this in person, but I found the lyrics to this pre-pulse song that says everything I could ever say, and more. I don't know where our relationship will go from here, I don't even know what we can do now. I only hope that I have not destroyed whatever friendship we did have.

Logan 

Max was reeling from the words in Logan's letter, but she had to read the song that he said described his feelings.

Romantic Fool

__

Sometimes I lay my heart on the line too easily,

it's romantic fool

I turn into. 

Sometimes a risk has got to be made, 

I feel with you, 

this is trouble to get into. 

If you feel the same, please just say, 

because I can't play the games people play, 

when it comes to love. 

So many times throughout my day, 

thoughts turn to you, 

and people catch me smiling. 

And I know not many words have passed between us, 

I feel alive 

when you pass on by. 

And if you're feeling sad 

you gotta say, 

because I can't play the games people play, 

when it comes to love. 

If you feel so inclined 

to give me some time, 

I won't waste time, just get on, get on, get on with love. 

Oh I lay my heart on the line so easily, 

so easily to you, 

so easily with you. 

If you bring on all this trouble, and I'm willing to be 

just with you, 

just with you. 

And if you feel the same, you gotta say 

because I can't play the games other people play 

when it comes to love. 

Come on baby. 

Tell me the words I want to hear. 

Tell me you're willing to give your love right on back to me, 

right on back to me. 

Come on, just say it, 

stop, stop delaying it, tell me the way you feel, 

are you a romantic fool too?

__

Max couldn't believe the words to the song. If it was true that these lyrics were what Logan was thinking, that meant that he was waiting for her to come to him to tell him that she loved him. _How could he do that to me? He knows that I have trouble with the whole emotion thing. I can't come right out and say I love him. I don't even know if I do. Wait a minute. He didn't tell me, he just left me a song. I could do that too. _Max started to pace around the apartment. She had to think of some kind of song that expressed her feelings. Her incredible memory certainly came in handy in situations like this. After about an hour of pacing and pondering, Max came up with the perfect song. She went into Logan's computer room hoping to find something to write on. By the phone she spotted his pad of paper that he used to take notes down on when he was talking to his informants. Max first wrote down the song.

Hanging by a Moment

Desperate for changing  
Starving for truth  
I'm closer to where I started  
Chasing after you

I'm falling even more in love with you  
Letting go of all I've held on to  
I'm standing here until you make me move  
I'm hangin by a moment here with you

Forgetting all I'm lacking  
Completely incomplete  
I'll take your invitation  
You take all of me now

I'm falling even more in love with you  
Letting go of all I've held on to  
I'm standing here until you make me move  
I'm hanging by a moment here with you  
I'm living for the only thing I know  
I'm running and not quite sure where to go  
And I don't know what I'm diving in to  
I'm hanging by a moment here with you

There's nothing else to lose  
There's nothing else to find  
There's nothing in the world  
That could change my mind  
There is nothing else...

__

After finishing with the song, Max left Logan a small note.

_Logan,_

Call me.

Max

Max left the two sheets of paper on the pad, and left, hoping that Logan would find the note the next time he went to do some work, which would more than likely be sometime later on that night.

****************************

One week later:

Max sat at the top of the Space Needle, dejected and disappointed. Not only had she not seen Logan for the past week, she hadn't even talked to him. He wasn't even calling her to do any Eyes Only missions. After what seemed like forever, Max had finally almost given up waiting for Logan, but she knew deep down, that she could never do that. And that was why she found herself here, on the Space Needle at four in the morning. She needed to get away from everything, and get to a place where she could be alone with her thoughts. As dawn broke, Max descended the Needle and headed straight to work. Still feeling down around lunch, Max decided to pay Jondy a visit. She hadn't heard from her either, and Jondy had said that she wanted to know how things turned out with Logan. Max biked over to Rapid Delivery Service and walked in. She walked over to the front desk and rang the little bell. A short, bald man jumped up at the sound of the bell.

"Hi, can I help you?"

"Um yeah, I'm looking for my sister Jondy. Do you know where I can find her?"

"Oh, you're Jondy's sister? She talks about you all the time. She's one of my best riders you know, and she hasn't even been here that long!"

Max smiled at the man. "Yeah well, that's my sister! So, do you know where she is? I was hoping to have lunch with her."

"Well, there's a coffee place a couple blocks over that a lot of my riders go to, you could try there."

"Thanks." Max turned around and walked out the door. _Thank god I don't work there. So sterile and clean, everyone is so efficient. And that guy is just too cheerful for his own good. He almost made me miss Normal, as odd as that thought is. _Max got on her bike and began to look for the coffee shop. And as always with Max, her mind began to wander. _I wonder, since I haven't heard from either Jondy or Logan all week is because they're still together. _Max frowned at that thought. _ No, that couldn't be it, could it? Because I mean, Jondy wanted me to tell her what happened, and Logan left me those lyrics. But why hasn't he called? I could always just ask Jondy straight up. I could always tell when she was lying. What makes this any different? _Max pulled up beside a run down place that had a half-broken sign hanging over the door. _The Grind. Hmmm, cute. _Max walked in, and did a quick scan of the place. There wasn't much to it. On her left were a couple of old couches and some chairs around a small table, straight ahead were a few tables with two or three chairs around them, with a small TV overhead, and a door that must've led to a back room. To her right was a large case and front desk. The case had a bunch of coffee cakes and treats. Behind it was a wall filled with prices of old specialty coffees, with a large white banner covering most of them that said "Black coffee. $7.00." The walls of the rest of the place were covered in brown-colored murals of people from the Victorian Age. At first glance, Jondy didn't appear to be in the coffee shop. There was a couple necking on the one couch, and a group of people surrounding one of the tables near the back that were completely engrossed in a political conversation that was becoming more and more heated every second that went by, and the clerk, but other than that, there was no one around. Max was about to leave when she gave the couple a second look. The girl was facing towards Max, while the guy had his back to her. Max looked closely at the girl first, since she could see her face. Upon closer inspection, it was Jondy! Max smiled to herself. _Jondy's only been here a week and she already has herself a guy. One that seems fairly muscular, with blonde, spikey hair... oh my god, this can't be happening. I knew it though. _"Jondy, I can't believe you!"

Jondy reluctantly pulled away from her kiss when she heard her name being yelled across the coffee shop. She looked in the direction of the front door, and saw Max standing there, absolutely fuming. As soon as the girls made eye contact, Max spun around, and left. Jondy threw an apologetic glance towards here partner, and flew after Max. She caught up with her just as Max was about to hop on her bike. "Max, wait! It is so not what you're thinking."

"How could it be anything else? It's obvious that you and Logan are happy together, and I'm not going to stop you." Max looked at Jondy and became even more angry, if that was even possible, when she saw Jondy smiling. "What?"

"Did you see a wheelchair?"

Max thought about it and Jondy could see her going over the event in her mind. 

"That's right Max. No wheelchair. That wasn't Logan. Come here." Jondy grabbed the hand of a very stunned looking Max, and pulled her back into the coffee shop, over to the couches. Max saw the back of the guy Jondy had been kissing, and when she walked around to see his face, it was clearly not Logan. Max let out a sigh she didn't even know she was holding. Jondy sat down beside the guy, and motioned for Max to sit across from them.

Max looked at the guy. He was about twenty years old, fairly built, but it was the kind of build that you really couldn't see. He wore baggy blue jeans, a tight white shirt, and an orange vest. He had spikey blonde hair, and piercing blue eyes, that were the ones you could just get lost in. Just like Logan's.

"Max. It's not polite to stare."

Max shook her head, and looked at Jondy, who was clutching the guy's hand, and smiling at Max. Max looked back to the guy. "Sorry, you just look a lot like a friend of mine."

Jondy turned to the guy beside her. "Justin, this is my sister, Max. Max, this is Justin. We work together."

Justin leaned over to shake Max's hand. "Max, it's so good to finally meet you. I've heard so much about you."

Max looked over at Jondy. "Apparently so have a lot of other people." Max looked back at Justin. "Nice to meet you though."

Justin leaned over to give Jondy a quick kiss. "I've gotta go. See you tonight?"

"Wouldn't miss it."

The pair smiled at each other and Justin got up and left, throwing Max a quick wave. Jondy's eyes followed him out the door, and looked back at Max, who had her one eyebrow raised and a very bemused look on her face. "What?"

"You've only been here a week, and already you've scored yourself a guy!"

Jondy shrugged her shoulders. "Well, yeah!"

Max shook her head. "Wow, I wish I had your attitude towards guys, I just can't seem to get anywhere with them."

"I take it then, with that revelation and with your little outburst, you and Logan haven't worked things out too well."

Max leaned back in the chair she was sitting in. "You could say that. I went to go see him a week ago, like you said I should, and he wasn't there. He had just left me a note, so I left him one telling him to call me. But the thing is, he hasn't, and I'm scared to think of why."

"Well, what did his note say?"

"See, that's the thing, he said that he could never come right out and talk about our relationship to me, so he left me the lyrics to this old song, which basically said he loved me, but he was too afraid to say it out loud."

"So what did you do?"

"Well, I decided that I would just leave a note too, so I did. All it said was to call me, and then I left the lyrics to an old song which basically said I was waiting for him... and I can't believe I'm telling you all this."

"What are sisters for?"

"I guess so. So what do you think?"

"Hmmm, that's a toughie, but personally, I'd give him one more day, and then drop by when he least suspects it, and confront him."

"Do you think it'll work? I mean, I can't understand..."

Suddenly the program that was drowning on in the background on the TV set cut off, and both Max and Jondy turned to watch it.

__

Do not attempt to adjust your set. This is a Streaming Freedom Bulletin. The cable hack will last exactly sixty seconds. It cannot be traced, it cannot be stopped, and it is the only free voice left in this city. Over the past week, a government agency call Manticore, has been monitoring all communications in hopes of finding some of their rogue agents. Because of this monitoring, Eyes Only has been unable to contact many of its informants for fear that information on them could be used against them by any agency that may be looking for them. Because of this inconvenience, many crime lords have taken the opportunity to go on crime sprees throughout the country. I am interested in contacting one informant in particular, and they know who they are. Come to my safe house immediately. Peace. Out.

"Whoa! Max! Manticore!"

Max kept staring at the screen, and didn't want her concentration broken. She put a hand up in the air. "Shut up." Max knew Jondy was hurt by her statement, but she had to think. _His safe house, what safe house? It couldn't be any of the normal ones, because he said HIS safe house. It wouldn't be his apartment. His cabin. Logan's at his uncle's cabin. Of course. _Max quickly stood up. "Jondy, I have to go. Whatever you do, do not talk on the phone or radio. I'll be back in a couple of days." Max started to walk out of the coffee shop. Even the sound of Jondy's complaints did not stop her. She had to get to Logan to see what was going on.

**************************** 


	6. Hide and Seek

A/N- I am so sorry that this took so incredibly long to get out, but I was trying to get 'Thoughtful Gifts' finished. But, here is the latest chapter. Hope you enjoy!

Oh, and Aimee? Thank you so much for helping me out, otherwise this chapter would not have made any sense at all. ;)

**************************** 

Logan turned off the recording equipment, pulled off his earpiece, and sighed. "Do you think she saw it?" Logan spun his chair around to look at Bling, who was standing in the doorway. "What if she didn't see it and is trying to call me? I don't even want to think what'll happen if she gets caught."

"I'm sure she saw it Logan. If not, just run the hack again until she does. For now, all we can do is wait. If she saw it, she'll be here soon."

Logan rolled past Bling into the living room of the cabin, sighing as he went. "I know, but I'm still worried about her."

"She's a big girl Logan, she can take care of herself."

Logan rolled in front of the fire, and watched the flames dance as he not so patiently waited for the one person that he cared for more than life itself.

**************************

Max flew back to Jam Pony from the coffee shop, gave Normal some lame excuse about why she wouldn't be in for a few days, and then raced home to change her clothes and bike. She made a quick glance around her apartment to make sure that nothing was out of the ordinary, and then grabbed her bike, and pushed it out of the room. Down on the streets, Max weaved through the hoards of people, taking closer notice to the back alleyways and such. Now that Logan had pointed out the fact that there were a lot more crimes going on than normal, Max began to notice them. Almost every alleyway she passed, someone was getting mugged. Normally she would have stopped to help at least a few of the people, but for now, she had to get to Logan to see what was going on. Just before she hit the checkpoint to get out of the city towards Logan's cabin, Max's pager went off. She looked down to see the number. _Damn. Original Cindy. How did I forget to tell her that I was going away? She's going to be pissed at me if I don't call her back, but I can't. She'll have to wait a few days. _Max continued on her way, and made it to the checkpoint. She pulled up the back of the line, and waited for what seemed like an eternity to make it to the front. For once the guards weren't being too picky about who they let through, and Max made it through with relative ease, and only had to use a few of her 'charms'. As she sped down the deserted highways, the only thoughts that weaved through her mind were ones that made her even more apprehensive to get to Logan. 

***********************

Jondy sat there dumbfounded. Logan had just warned the two of them that Manticore was basically after them, and Max had just bolted. Jondy didn't know what to do. Her first instinct was to follow Max, but for some reason she knew that that wasn't what Max wanted her to do. Besides, if she just upped and left, she'd be out of a job, which was something that she drastically needed to blend in. _Oh my god. What have I done. _Jondy put her head in her hands. _I just called Zack yesterday from my own phone to report as to my situation, as well as Max's since I was the closest X-5 to her. If what Logan said is true, Lydecker heard my conversation. He knows where we are, and where Zack is. How could I have been so stupid? At the very least I should have called him from a payphone. What am I going to do? I can't call him, can I? Then Lydecker would definitely know where we were if he somehow missed the first call. I have to warn him somehow though, but how? I can't even ask for Max's help now, because I don't know where she's going. Logan said his safe house, but that could be anywhere. Maybe if I think enough, I can figure it out. Right now, the only thing I can do is to live my life as normally as I possibly can, and try to not talk on any type of communication devices. This'll be tough if I get paged. Oh well, I'll have to deal I guess. _Jondy got up from her spot on the couch, and walked out of the coffee shop to her bike in a daze. _Get your head in the game soldier, Lydecker could be anywhere. _Jondy shook her head, as if to get the cobwebs out, got on her bike, and peddled back to her place of employment to continue her day as if nothing was wrong. She got back to work a few minutes late, and ignored everyone in the place as she walked back to her locker. Realizing that she was alone, Jondy leaned her forehead against the cool metal of her locker door. She was so deep in her own thoughts, she didn't even hear Barry come in the room.

"Hey kid, what's up? You're never late coming back from lunch."

Jondy jumped slightly at the sound of Barry's voice, and turned to look at him, giving him one of her many practiced fake smiles. "Nothing Barry, I'm fine."

"Really? You don't look so great."

__

I really don't feel up to working after this little revelation. Maybe I can use my looking like death and pass it off that I'm sick. Yeah, let's do that. Jondy glanced to the floor. "Actually Barry, I'm not feeling too well. Would you mind if I took the rest of the day off?"

"Of course not Jondy. Take as long as you need. Just make sure you take care of yourself."

Jondy gave Barry a sheepish smile. "Thanks Barry. I will."

Barry gave Jondy a wide smile, and turned to leave.

Jondy watched as Barry left, and felt good about getting some time off. _This'll give me time to figure out what the heck is going on. Maybe Max will be back tomorrow, and can tell me just what the heck is going on. If I could figure out where this safe house is, I can even go to her. I'll think that over tonight. _Jondy opened her locker and a small piece of paper fell out onto the floor. Curious, Jondy bent over to pick it up. _What's this? _Jondy opened it up, and saw that it was a note. She began to read.

_Jondy,_

Sorry I had to bail on lunch, but I'll make up for it tonight. Promise.

Justin

Oh crap. Tonight. I completely forgot! What the heck am I going to do? I can't even call him to tell him not to bother, and I won't see him at all for the rest of the day. What can I do? Barry. Jondy quickly gathered the things she needed from her locker and sped to the front desk. She looked around for Barry, who for once, wasn't there. Jondy turned towards the little gathering area, and walked up to a couple of riders that were on their break. "Hey, do either of you know where Barry is?" The one rider simply pointed behind Jondy. Jondy turned and saw him walking up to his desk. _I guess even bosses take bathroom breaks. _Jondy ran towards the desk, and stopped short of bowling it over. "Hey Barry, I'm heading out now, but can you do me a favor? It's nothing big."

"Sure Jondy, what do you need?"

"I was supposed to meet Justin tonight, and I'm really not feeling up to it, and since I haven't had the chance to hook my phone up yet, I was wondering if you could give him a note for me?" Jondy spit out her speech, and prayed that Barry would do this simple task for her.

Barry looked up at Jondy. He knew that she and Justin had something going on, but neither of them were letting it affect their work, so he had no qualms about it. In fact, he found it kind of sweet since they met at his place of work. He could see the regret in Jondy's eyes about having to break her date. Reaching down under the desk, Barry took out a piece of paper, and a pen, and placed them in front of Jondy. "Just write whatever you need to here, and I'll make sure that he gets it."

Jondy looked down into the eyes of her boss. He was becoming a close friend to her. "Thanks Barry." Jondy took the pen, and quickly scrawled out a note.

_Justin,_

I am so unbelievably sorry about canceling our date tonight, but something urgent involving Max came up. I hope that you understand, and I'll call you the second I get back into town.

Kisses,

Jondy

Jondy looked down at her handiwork, and the 'kisses' part of the note. _Not totally like Max. We're both subtle, but I have to add in a touch of flair here and there. _Satisfied with her words, Jondy folded the paper, and gave it to Barry. "Thanks again Barry." Jondy turned around and headed out the door, on her way to her apartment so that she could pack her things and move once again. _Dumbest thing I could have ever done, calling from my home. That'll teach me. Well, if Logan's out of town, maybe I can just hang at his place for a few days............_

**********************************

Logan couldn't handle just waiting around for Max anymore. The wait was getting too much for him, so he decided to throw himself into work. He had managed to hack into the communication lines of a couple of phone companies and had recorded some of the more interesting messages. One in particular had caught his attention, and as he became more and more engrossed in what the two parties were saying, he was unaware of the sound of a motorcycle roaring to a stop just outside the cabin door.

*******************************

Max pulled her motorcycle to a stop, unhooked the bag off the back, which contained a couple changes of clothes, and preceded to climb the stairs to the door. As she was about to open the door, she could hear voices. Very familiar voices.Being as quiet as she possibly could, Max opened the front door, and dropped her bag off to the side. As she crept deeper into the cabin, the voices became clearer.

"Yeah, and I got a job too. I'm really liking it here. I think I might even stay instead of going back to San Fran. And don't even say that it's not safe, because I think I'll be ok."

"What have you got on Max?"

Max froze at the mention of her. Whoever these people were, they knew about her.

"Personally, I think you should just give her the number so she can call you herself."

__

Wait a minute, that's Jondy's voice. How did she know to come here? And more importantly, how did she get here before me? But who is she talking to?

"Out of the question. If I gave her the number, she would compromise the rest of us."

__

Zack. Only he can sound like that.

"Did my plan work?"

"No Zack, it didn't, and I'm glad it didn't. I'm sorry, but I can't be involved in your little plan to make Max leave Logan and Seattle. Those two were meant to be together, and I'm not going to step between them."

"When did I suddenly become involved in this?" Logan muttered as he heard this little revelation.

__

Logan's in on all of this? Ok, that's it. Time to make my presence known. Max walked into the room, keeping her eyes on the floor. "Ok, that's it. I'm really..." Max looked up and saw only Logan in the room. Confusion hit her until she heard Jondy and Zack continue their conversation.

"I'll call you if anything goes down. Until then, consider this the last time I talk to you. Max and I were close when we were young, which is probably why we're so similar now. And since Max would hang up on you, that's my thought exactly."

With that, the line went dead. Max looked at Logan, who was sitting in shock. "Logan. I'm sorry, I didn't think..."

Logan wheeled up to Max. "It's ok Max. I've found a few of these conversations. For some reason your siblings all decided that this was the best week to check in with their CO. I'm thinking they had it all wrong."

Max smiled at Logan's conviction. "Can I listen to the others?"

Logan smiled when he saw Max's face soften with one. "Of course."

The two of them sat down, and began to go through all of the conversations that Logan had managed to copy.

*****************************

Jondy paced through Logan's apartment, half admiring her new digs, and half trying to figure out where Max had gone. _ Ok, think about this. Logan said he wanted to meet her at his safe house. Now, the guy probably has tons of safe houses across the city, and in different cities, but Max seemed to know which one right away. Ok, so they had to have been there before. Logan did say HIS safe house though. Maybe that's a clue. Nah, 'his' could just mean one that he uses for his Eyes Only work. _Jondy sat down on the couch and put her head in her hands. She closed her eyes, and tried to go through all the conversations in her head that would have anything to do with safe houses. _Zack. Wait a minute, why did he suddenly pop into my head? Probably just because I've totally made him a target. No, that's not it. Hmmm. Safe house. Zack. With Max. Wait, that's it! _Jondy leapt up from the couch and ran through Logan's apartment, looking for anything that would confirm her assumption. She found the picture she wanted. It was Logan standing in front of an old cabin. _That's it! This is so it. Of course. Zack told me how he and Max had stayed at a cabin before they were to make a run for Canada. He never did say why they didn't make it, but this is why! It was Logan's cabin, and Max for some reason came back to Seattle for him! This is where they are! _ Jondy dropped the picture, and ran out of the apartment, on her way towards where she prayed the cabin might be.

*****************************

Max leaned back in her chair and let out a large sigh. She and Logan had stayed up well into the night, pausing only briefly to wish goodnight to Bling, listening to conversations of her siblings, who were all giving out their locations. None of them were safe, because even if they didn't reveal their location specifically, Lydecker would be able to trace wherever the call came from, and find where they were. "What are we going to do Logan?"

Logan was beyond tired. His thought processes were down to almost nil, and here was one of the most intelligent people in the world asking him for advice. "I don't know Max. There's no way to warn any of them. Our only hope is that Zack saw my broadcast, but that would only happen if he were in Seattle. Do you know if he was by any chance?"

Max raised an eyebrow at Logan's question. "Do I ever know what that man is doing? He only drops in to try to take me away from Seattle, and then disappears for months on end. I'm the only one that doesn't have that number, remember?"

Logan took off his glasses so that he could rub his sore, tired eyes. "You're right. I'm sorry." Logan thought for a few seconds, and finally a plan began to develop in his over-worked mind. "Why don't I just broadcast across the country again? It seemed to work the last time."

Max felt a bit of energy spark into her as Logan told her his idea. She almost jumped up to hug him, but held herself back. "That'd be great. Why you do that, I'll make some sandwiches. Do you want one?"

Logan smiled a weary smile at her. "Yeah. Thanks."

Max trotted off towards the kitchen, and Logan set up his equipment to begin his broadcast. As soon as he finished the recording, Max walked into the room carrying two plates that each held a sandwich, and two bottles of water. As she handed the one plate to Logan, she noticed him looking at her. "What? Do I have something on my face or something?" Max pretended to wipe her face with her sleeve, and was relieved when Logan chuckled slightly.

"Max, we have to talk."

"Uh-oh. I don't think I like this already."

"Hear me out."

Max wolfed down her sandwich, and noticed that Logan simply put his aside. She looked into his eyes, but quickly looked elsewhere when she saw the intensity that was radiating out of them. "Ok."

"I've been... an idiot these past few days. I am so sorry I wasn't at my apartment that night. I should have been. I found the note you left me, and..."

Max abruptly got up from her chair, and grabbed her plate, fully intending on leaving this conversation. "Logan it's ok, never mind." As she turned to leave, Logan's voice stopped her.

"I think we can make this work."

Max stalled for a moment, but her inner voice told her to run, and that's exactly what she did. She ran, right for the kitchen. She put her dish in the sink, and leaned over the counter, breathing deeply to calm down, all the while letting Logan's words sink into her head. Suddenly, Max realized that her inner voice was gone, and the only thing that seemed right at that moment, was to go back to Logan. And Max did just that. She turned from the kitchen counter, and walked straight into the room she had left Logan in. He was still sitting in his chair, not having moved an inch from when she left him. She walked up to him, knelt down, and enveloped him into a hug. "Thank you."

Logan pulled his head back a bit so that he could look into her eyes. Their faces were so close together that he could hardly focus on her eyes. "For what?"

"Everything." Max almost whispered her answer.

Logan went on impulse, and closed the distance between them. He placed his lips on hers, and together, they fell into heaven, oblivious to the world around them.

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Jondy hopped off her new newly 'acquired' bike, and ran to the door of the cabin. _Ok, that was a good guess that the cabin was north of the city, but it makes sense since Max and Zack stopped here on their way to Canada. But we can't forget_ _the good people at Manticore that taught me to track people so well, otherwise there is no way in hell I would have found this place. _Jondy pulled out her trusty lock-picking equipment, and expertly picked the lock on the old door. She burst through, and could see the back of Logan's wheelchair. She headed right towards it, oblivious to what she would interrupt. "Max! Logan! I made the dumbest.... Oh my god."

Max and Logan reluctantly broke their kiss and looked into each other's eyes before looking at the person standing in the doorway.

Jondy was laughing on the inside, but her face was completely emotionless. "Max, if I'm not allowed to get any tonight, then neither can you. As for our little predicament. I made a huge mistake, and Lydecker knows where we are."

Max smiled at Logan, and then stood up to face Jondy. "Well, I guess it's time that we start making a plan to get out of our little predicament."

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	7. Barging in

A/N -sorry this took so long, but here's the next chapter. Hope you like! :)

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Logan watched from a distance as Max and Jondy went over what they were going to do. He had to chuckle though, as their conversation was quickly turning to gossip, as most talks between girls, sisters, tend to do.

"So, about that phone call that you made to Zack..."

Jondy looked up at Max. Her heart started to beat faster, and she quickly tried to calm it down so that Max wouldn't notice her nervousness on this topic. "What phone call?"

Max looked deep into Jondy's eyes. She could tell that Jondy was trying to hide this from her, but she had to know what was going on, and since there was no way in hell Zack would ever tell her, Jondy was Max's best bet. "Your last phone call to Zack. I heard it Jondy, Logan has it on tape. What's this plan you two have going on that obviously involves me in some way?"

Jondy looked away from Max's gaze. She couldn't bear to lie to her sister. To Max. But she didn't really want to tell her the truth either. It was too hard to say. "It wasn't my idea."

Max tried to will Jondy to look at her, but no amount of staring at her would bring her eyes up from their gaze on the floor. "Jondy, just tell me. I won't be angry, I promise."

Jondy could feel tears begin to develop in her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. To make her appear weak. "Max, I'm sorry. I totally didn't want to be a part of this, but Zack told me that you'd be out of danger if I did this."

Max was quickly becoming confused as to what was going on. "What?"

Jondy glanced over to the far side of the cabin, and could see Logan trying to be inconspicuous about listening in on their conversation. She had to smile. _That guy is so concerned about Max. It's amazing. I can only hope that one day I meet someone who cares even half as much about me. _Jondy noticed Max looking over at Logan as well, and could see the sheepish grins that crossed both of their faces when they locked eyes. Hoping to bring Max back into the conversation, Jondy began her story. "Ok Max, here's my story, from top to bottom so to speak. Unlike you, I was given Zack's contact number. I only ever talked to him in person a few times, but I methodically checked in with him on his voicemail. After a few years of running from city to city, I finally settled down in San Francisco. I loved it there. I do love it there. The city isn't all that dirty, there's always some slummy job somewhere to pick up, and best of all, whenever I just need to get away and think, the Golden Gate bridge is there waiting for me."

Max's attention was drawn away from Logan when Jondy had begun to speak, and she was now fully engrossed in what she had to say. "Yeah, I know what you mean about having someplace to think. Mine's the Space Needle."

Jondy looked up at Max and smiled at yet another one of their similarities. They both found solace in high places. "That's funny. I was just thinking the other night about what a great place that would be to go, and how I would have to check it out one of these days." Max smiled back at Jondy, and so she continued on with her story. "So anyways, I was living in San Francisco, and every time I talked to Zack, I begged him to let me know where you were."

"And he refused to tell you, right?"

"Yeah, all he would say is that if I were to see you, somehow all of us X5's would be discovered. I could never really figure out the logic in that."

"At least you got to talk to him. When I finally found him a few months ago, he wouldn't even tell me about the others; who was alive, and who was... no longer with us. At least you had something to go on."

"But that wasn't enough. I had to know where you were. Finally, something really had Zack upset awhile ago, and he let it slip that you were here in Seattle. I was fully prepared to come find you, but then he told me that something big had gone down. You had almost gotten caught by Lydecker and had fled to Canada. And, I believed him."

"Well, why shouldn't you? We were always taught to keep moving in enemy territory, and I would be putting myself at risk for staying in one place too long."

"Yeah, that's what I figured. So why did you stay then?" Jondy watched as Max looked forlornly at Logan. He was beginning to wheel himself into his bedroom. _I guess it is kind of late. Even the rest of our siblings needed more sleep than Max and I, so I'm thinking Logan would need a lot more. It's late anyways. We can talk about what we're going to do about Lydecker tomorrow._

"A friend needed my help."

"It was him, wasn't it?"

Max looked back at Jondy. This conversation was quickly veering from where she wanted it to go, but she might as well tell Jondy what had happened. She was her sister, after all. "Yeah. I had gotten myself in some trouble with Lydecker, and Zack and I had fled the city to go to Canada. Only, we decided to stay here, at the cabin, for a night before moving on, and I just felt something was wrong, you know? So I called Logan, and when Bling, his personal trainer, answered the phone, I knew. Something was really wrong. He was in the hospital, because a couple of bullet fragments that were left in his spine after he was shot were migrating, and were causing him to bleed out. I got back to him just in time. He needed a transfusion, and I was there for him. I've stayed in Seattle ever since then, without even thinking of leaving. For any reason."

"So that's what Zack was talking about. He sort of told me about that day. That's how I found this cabin."

"Yeah." Max looked away from Jondy. "So, now that you've gotten another part of my life out of me, continue your story."

"Oh! Right! Ok, so anyways, I was happily living in San Francisco, fully free of Lydecker, because I looked so different from what I was supposed to look like. But somehow, he found out where I was living, and began moving in on me. He was getting too close for comfort, so I decided to leave for awhile. I didn't know where to go, and so I figured I'd head towards Seattle. I knew that you probably weren't here anymore, but I figured, what the hey? You never know, you could have been here. Well, I checked in with Zack, because I figured that he wouldn't mind me being here since you were gone. Boy, was I wrong. He totally flipped when he found out where I had decided to go."

"So, what made you two develop this plan then?"

"Oh, the plan. Right." Jondy looked at the floor. _I can't believe I actually agreed to this plan, but I thought that I was doing what was best for Max. How could I know she actually loved the guy? _"Well, ok. After I found out who you were, I called him because I was so excited about finding you. That's when he made this plan. He told me that you had abandoned all of us to be with Logan, and that Zack had tried on numerous times to make you leave, but every time you refused."

"Well, that part's true, about me refusing to leave with him."

"So anyways, he told me that if you stayed in Seattle any longer, you were going to be taken back to Manticore. I didn't want that to happen to you Max, so I asked him if there was anything I could do. That's when this plan came out. Zack told me that the only way to get you to leave Seattle was if there was no chance of you being with Logan, and he figured the best way for that to happen was if I moved in on him, got him to fall for me, and leave you alone. You would then leave Seattle, I could dump Logan, and move back to San Francisco."

"So then that's why you broke into his place?"

"Oh, no. That was purely coincidental. I needed some fast cash, and his place just happened to be the one that I hit. I had no idea who you were at that point. I didn't even get the connection between you two until you knocked me unconscious there."

"Sorry about that."

Jondy laughed at Max. "It's ok Max. I would've done the exact same thing if you had ever swung with my ride." When Jondy saw another smile creep along Max's face, she continued on. "So anyways, I continued on with Zack's little plan, fully believing that I was doing what was best for you. Then I realized why you stayed in Seattle. You and Logan really like each other." Jondy could see Max turn away slightly and start to blush. "Which is ok. I mean, I could only wish I can find a guy as great as him. But yeah, that's what brings us to the phone call that you probably heard. I called Zack to update him on what was going down, I got frustrated at him, and hung up. But, that was the phone call that seems to have brought Lydecker right to me." Jondy looked at Max and caught her staring at the closed door of Logan's bedroom. Taking the hint, she stood up and stretched. "Well, this girl is going to get some sleep."

Max looked up at Jondy. _Why is she going to bed? She never sleeps. _"Since when do you sleep?"

Jondy could only smile at Max's ignorance of her situation. Jondy leaned in really close to Max, and whispered in her ear. "Since my sister wants to be alone." Jondy pulled back away from Max and started walking towards the guest room. "Besides, with all that's been going down lately, I'm a physical wreck!" Jondy threw Max a wink, and closed the door to her room behind her. _Ok Max, I gave you the opportunity, so please use it. I feel bad enough that I walked in on you two earlier. I just better not be kept up by any noises tonight, because I do want to be ready for tomorrow. I have the feeling that the next few days are going to be rough._

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Max was left sitting in shock on the couch. Jondy had just told her everything she didn't want to hear. Zack really didn't want her to be with Logan, and he had even tried to get her own sister to break up what she had with Logan. That was just too wrong to even think about. _And then, what's this with me wanting to be alone? What's that supposed to mean? _Max shifted her position on the couch so that she was laying down. _I guess since the guest room is occupied, this is where I get to sleep tonight. Wait a minute. Is that what Jondy was hinting at me? She'd go to bed so that I could have some time with Logan? She wouldn't do that, would she? Well, I'm open to the idea. I don't really want to sleep on the couch, but if I go in to Logan's room, that'll be opening a whole new door to our relationship that we'll never be able to close. What should I do? I want to go in there, but he's probably asleep anyways. I don't want to wake him up. _Max rolled around on the couch a few times, trying to get comfortable, but nothing was working. _You know what? Screw this. I don't need to be stiff in the morning. I don't care if I wake him up, because I think I deserve a bed to sleep on. _Max got up and crept to Logan's bedroom, slowly opening the door, making absolutely sure she didn't make a sound.

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Logan had listened to most of Max and Jondy's conversation, occasionally stealing a glance here and there at Max. After awhile though, he could feel his eyes closing on their own account, and knowing full well that there was no way he could stay up with those two, he had retired to his room. He had puttered around for awhile, and finally hoisted himself onto his bed. He lay there listening to the soft murmur of the two girl's voices, and could feel himself drifting off to sleep. After what only seemed like minutes, Logan woke up with a start. He couldn't hear any voices anymore, and everything was quiet in the cabin. _Wow, I'm impressed. Those two actually do sleep once in awhile. But, I guess they're both preparing for tomorrow. I wonder where Max is sleeping? I'm sure Jondy commandeered the guest room. _Logan sighed, and could feel himself drifting to sleep again. _I'll think about it in the morning. I'm too tired to think about anything right now. _Sleep hit Logan quickly, but once again he was roused from his sleep. This time it was because he could hear the door to his room open. He opened his eyes to see the silhouette of his love enter the room. He watched her as she slowly came into the room, and turned around to quietly close the door. She turned around to look at him, and he knew that she could see his eyes open. "Max? What are you doing?"

"I'm sorry I woke you up. I can just go." Max turned back towards the door, but the sound of Logan's voice stopped her in her tracks.

"It's ok. What did you want?"

"Well, the couch really isn't all that comfortable, so I was wondering if..."

Logan couldn't figure out what Max was having so much trouble saying, but then it hit him. "Max, why don't you sleep here? It's a lot softer than the couch." Logan watched Max, but she didn't move. "I don't bite, well, unless you want me to."

Max chuckled a bit, and turned towards the bed. _It's now or never. _Max slowly closed the distance between her and the bed, and when she got there, she raised her one leg onto the bed, pulled the other one up as well, and crawled towards Logan. She didn't go into his arms though, because no matter how right it seemed, they just weren't at that point in their relationship yet. Instead, she laid right beside him, just out of his reach.

Logan fully understood why Max laid down where she did. He knew that it would take awhile for their relationship to evolve to where he wished it was right now. But he still had to try. "How are you doing Max?"

Max was laying with her back to Logan, and was actually trying to sleep, but she knew full well that that would never happen while Logan was so close to her. "I'm ok. You know, it's just a run of the mill, average day for me."

"Max, it's ok you know. We'll figure this out."

Max rolled over so that she could look at Logan. "I know, I'm just worried for my siblings, you know? I mean, Lydecker could know where every single one of them was right now. I'm scared of what'll happen."

Logan held out his arms to Max, hoping that she would accept his comfort. He was elated when she did. "Everything's going to be fine."

Max didn't know what prompted her to do it, but as soon as Logan held out his arms to her, she gladly slid into them. Just feeling them wrap around her body, she suddenly felt a great wave of calmness descend over her. _Thank god for making me choose to come in here tonight. _And with Logan's words, Max felt that much more confident that everything actually would be fine. As Logan's warmth enveloped her, Max slipped into a deep sleep, with Logan not that far behind her.

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As always, Jondy didn't sleep that much. She woke up with a start, which was usual for her, and quickly took in her surroundings. She listened carefully to any sounds in the cabin, but could hear none. _I guess it's safe to assume that I can leave my room without walking into anything I shouldn't be. _Jondy crawled out of her bed, and traipsed out of her room. She didn't even bother to change out of her pajamas, and went straight for the kitchen, hoping to score some food before they started working on plans to help their siblings and stop Lydecker's latest endeavor. Jondy padded through the cabin and just as she was about to enter the kitchen, she could hear Max and Logan giggling. _My sister is giggling? When the heck did that happen? _Jondy smiled to herself as she heard Max shushing Logan. "Can I come in? Or am I interrupting something again?" Jondy walked into the kitchen to see Logan sitting on the counter with his legs spread open, and Max standing in between his legs, holding a bowl of porridge. 

"Of course not. Logan made some oatmeal. Do you want any?"

"Um, sure, why not?"

Max handed the bowl that was in her hands to Logan and was about to get a bowl for Jondy, when Jondy put up her hands.

"It's ok! I can get it myself. You two seem to be having a fun time without me, so I'll just eat it outside. It seems warm enough to do that." Jondy quickly moved towards the pot on the stove that held the warm breakfast treat, scooped a few big spoonfuls into her bowl, and went towards the refrigerator to pile on the necessary ingredients to make the breakfast that much more enjoyable. After finishing that, Jondy stole a quick glance at the happy couple on the other side of the room, and headed towards the door. As soon as she walked outside, the cool mountain air hit her dead on, removing any shards of sleep that may have lingered in her mind. Jondy looked around for a place to sit, and as she was leaning over the railing of the deck, something caught her eye. She looked up at the overhang of the deck. _The roof is as good a place as any. Gives me a place to think, too. _Jondy took one step off the deck, and then calmly jumped the few feet it required her to get to the roof. _Thank god for Manticore, is all I can say. It really comes in handy being revved up in situations like this. _Jondy walked up towards the center of the roof and sat down. She dug into her oatmeal, and actively looked around as she ate. Jondy looked into her bowl after a few minutes, and saw that most of her meal was already gone. _Wow, who knew someone could make something as bland as oatmeal this good. Max picked a good one I'm thinking. Whoa, what was that? _Jondy looked up as she heard a slight rustle coming from the trees near the cabin. _It's nothing. Probably just some wild animal. I haven't heard any cars, so it's not military or any other person looking for a weekend getaway. _As soon as she finished her thought, and relaxed a bit, something grabbed her from behind, covering her mouth so that she couldn't yell. As quickly as it grabbed her though, it let go. Jondy turned around to look right into the eyes of Zack. "Zack? What are you doing here?"

"I heard the hack, and seeing as you just called me, I knew that we were all in danger."

Jondy looked down. "Thanks for the friendly hello Zack. Way to make a girl feel even worse about what she did."

"I can't help it Jondy, you screwed up and you know it. Now we have to get out of this jam that we're in. What are you doing here anyways?"

"Well, since all of our siblings are at risk, I thought I'd get away from it all and chill at this totally dope cabin that I found awhile ago." Jondy inwardly smiled when she saw the look Zack was giving her._ I love it when I get a good comeback in on him. He's so funny when people are being sarcastic around him. _"Relax Zack. Max was coming here, and since I figured Lydecker knew where to find me, I thought I'd tag along for the ride."

"Max is here?"

"Well, yeah, it is her cabin."

"It's not hers."

"Ok, I'm sorry, Logan's cabin."

Zack looked away from Jondy. "Where are those two anyways?"

Jondy resumed eating her meal. _Just because Zack shows up, doesn't mean I have to let a free meal go to waste. _Without even looking up, Jondy answered. "They're eating breakfast." _Oh, maybe I should warn him, I don't want him walking in on anything like I have in the past two days. _"Oh, Zack? You shouldn't..." Jondy looked up from her bowl to see that Zack had already dropped down from the roof, and was on his way in. _Can't say I feel sorry for him._

Zack dropped off the roof, and climbed the stairs to the front door. He reached for the handle, and walked inside. He headed towards the kitchen and stopped dead in his tracks. He knew that something had to be up between Max and Logan since Jondy hadn't even been able to break up the two, but this was too much. Logan was sitting on the counter with his legs spread open, holding onto Max, who was standing in between them. As Zack stood in the shadows to watch, Logan dipped a couple of his fingers into a bowl that he was holding, and held them out in front of him. Zack could see Max lock eyes with Logan, and grab Logan's arm, pulling his fingers into her mouth. She started to suck off the goo that had been on them, and as she did, Logan's face broke out into an ear to ear grin. Zack became instantly furious because Logan was obviously enjoying this little interaction immensely.

"Ha! Don't worry, I caught them in worse positions than this!" Jondy happily strolled by Zack into the kitchen, to put her bowl into the sink. She had finished her breakfast, and was hoping to see Zack's reaction to Max and Logan. After seeing the other shows that Max and Logan had put on for her, Jondy wasn't even fazed by this latest one. _This is too funny. This is going to be the best day ever! _Jondy continued to smile as she washed out her bowl. When Jondy finished cleaning out the bowl, Jondy put it in the sink to dry, and turned to the couple while putting a hand on her hip. "You know, you two should really learn how to do all of this without an audience."

Max turned to Jondy, keeping a hold on Logan's arm and keeping a smile firmly on her face. "What do you mean? You're not considered an audience the way you keep barging in here."

Jondy raised an eyebrow, and pointed towards the door of the kitchen. "I may not be, but I think he would count as an audience member."

Max's gaze shifted to where Jondy was pointing, and she immediately dropped her grasp on Logan's arm. "Zack! What are you doing here?"

Zack stepped out of the shadows finally making himself known. "Well, I heard your boyfriend's latest hack, and I figured you might be useful in helping me relocate our siblings."

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The three X5's were seated around the kitchen table. Logan was off taking a shower, allowing the trio to have some time together. Also, he felt kind of awkward after having Zack burst in on he and Max.

"Ok, so what are we going to do?" Max shifted in her chair a bit as Zack looked at her. _I know I shouldn't let this bother me, but I don't like the way Zack keeps looking at me. It's my life, and I can live it anyway I choose._

"Zack, can't you just call everyone and tell them what's up? Lydecker knows where they are anyways, so just call them and tell them to move and to contact you later on."

"That's all well and good Jondy, but then Lydecker will be able to find me. What do you say I should do about that?"

"Don't get smug with me Zack. I'm just throwing out ideas here."

"I'm sure Logan could rig up a phone that wouldn't be traceable. Some kind of cell phone or something?" Max looked at Zack, but quickly had to look away. He gave her an even colder stare than he had all morning when she mentioned Logan again.

"Look, Zack, don't get angry with Max here. We don't have time for this! I think this makes sense. Logan can hook up some kind of secure line, and you can call the rest of our siblings, and just tell them to move. Tell them to call you in a few months or something like that, because by then, the three of us will hopefully have taken care of this little situation." _I love taking charge! Especially since I'm sitting with the best X5's! I feel so important! _Jondy bit back a smile, and instead stared down Zack.

"Fine. You two can figure all this out. I'm going for a walk." Zack quickly stood up from the table, causing his chair to fly backwards, and walked out of the cabin.

"I think he's jealous of Logan." Jondy stared at the cabin door as it slammed shut behind Zack.

"You think?"

"Well, let's show big brother what we can do, and start this really weak plan that we have so far!"

Max smiled at Jondy. "Aiight!"

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End file.
